I seem to recall a "why do you garden" post last year that covered much of this topic, most likely on the Vegetable Forum; but I can't find it. It may have passed into the archives, or whatever afterlife good threads go to when they fall off the site. But other threads wander off-topic, and contain more than meets the eye; the one below discusses some of the non-material benefits that gardeners gain from their hobby - including stress relief. For the most part, I am a vegetable gardener, so I tend to view gardening primarily through that lens. There can be stressful times for a vegetable gardener... the hectic Spring planting, fighting off herbivores (and sometimes thieves), destructive weather, the frenzy to preserve a bountiful harvest before it spoils, rushing to cover plants when frost first threatens. A garden rewards you for your labors; the more effort you put into it, the more you (usually) get out of it. Some years, when all goes right, the harvest can be enormous. My family & friends eat like kings from August to October, and the canned & frozen produce lasts all Winter. But as rewarding as the harvest itself may be, I believe just being in the garden is relaxing. A garden is a three-dimensional painting of our own design, a living expression of our individuality. No two gardens are alike. It takes planning, foresight, perseverance, and hard work... it is more of a journey than a destination. When I am in my garden, even if that garden is not on my property, I am "home"... until the frost comes, and the canvas is wiped clean. Kind of like a Picasso drawn on an etch-a-sketch - BANG - gone. That used to be a depressing time for me. But when I began saving seeds seriously, gardening became a nearly year-round activity... no more "cold turkey" for me, thank you. Now I process seeds until December, swap seeds all Winter, and begin planning the next year's garden in February. It lets me spread the joy, so to speak. Gardenweb also helps bridge the gap, since I can spend time with gardeners of like mind... dreaming of growing things while the ice still reigns outside. A garden (be it flower, vegetable, orchard, landscape, or a manicured lawn) is a good metaphor for life; all of the basic lessons are there. It is a sanctuary, a quite place we can retreat to when the world wears us down. It can be adventure, beauty, fulfillment, and a labor of love. It is more than stress relief - it is renewal. Here is a link that might be useful: You can buy it cheaper than you can grow it

Oh, Wendy your garden is beautiful. I hope you get well real soon. Gardening and stress goes hand in hand I think. At times it feels great working outside, then others times it seems like pure torture. Let me start at the beginning of the season Spring. Last spring was pure torture this year, after working in the gardens for two years this spring I had an abundant of weeds everywhere I felt like crying how in the world will I ever clean out all the weeds. Well, as it turned out the weeds were easy to pull up. I don't know what type they were but their roots were barely in the ground so with a simple raking they were gone. Once everything was cleaned up and spring was getting well on it's way the rains came and oh the joy of having rain to water the gardens and not because it's free water and it saves me time from having to water, though I do have soaker hoses set out so I'm not out there for hours watering, Theres nothing better than rain water for plants. Awe, but then the rains would not stop and if it wasn't raining it was cloudy so everything came to a stop. Nothing was growing right, if at all. Then one night we had 7 inches of rain when in a few hours and it flooded our town and others around us. With to much rain most all the roses I have and others I've seen about town lost all their leaves. They are blooming but mostly bare of leaves. A lot of us lost plants because we were trying to do the right thing by planting drought tolerant plants, ones for our area HA that turned out to be a big disappointment to loose so many plants. For some of us it becomes an addiction, we fall head over heels in love with a plant or a species of plant like daylilies. So then comes the madness of making our beds bigger to get our fix. It can be disheartening when you try to grow a plant and it does not work for you. I cannot tell you how many plants I've killed most likely from giving it to much love or buying it on impulse and not knowing how to care for it. Live and learn the hard way sometimes. It feels good to get my hands into the dirt planting something and then sit back to watch it grow, see it get larger as time goes by. Then all of a sudden you realize that the plant does not have enough room and will have to be moved or move the ones around it. Another leanring curve. Then you have fall coming and you start planning for winter, this means more cleaning up, feeding some plants so they'll be really for spring. Trim ones once frost has killed it back. Easiest ones are evergreens or dormant plants. Dormants like Esperanza (yellow bells), salvias you don't trim till spring, so you have dead looking sticks (as my husband says) all over the yard. Roses in Texas don't get trimmed till February because of our spells of warm weather. Gardening is pretty much a year around job but with breaks in-between. When working outside or just sitting out there I feel a calm most of the time. I've been going through some trials the past 5 years one thing then another happening and I can feel as though the world is weighting down heavy on me but once I get outside and can enjoy just puttering around thinking up of what I want to do next, how I'm going to do it keeps my mind off troubles for a while. We have Canadian Geese that fly over our house in the spring and fall and it is the most beautiful sight to see and hear them honking over head. There's nothing like seeing the little humming birds come to feed off the fruits of my labor. As well as butterflies fluttering about the garden. There is a great feeling knowing you've taken a small piece of land and made it into something that others enjoy as well. My husband was very surprised when he saw butterflies and humming birds come to our yard and he didn't know why we had them now when we had none before. I had to tell him that I planted plants that attract them. It's also a great feeling to see it come all together where before there was nothing but dirt and weeds. It's is a great feeling when your small grandson walks with you in the garden telling you how pretty the flowers are. Showing him how to grow thing's from seed. I don't want to leave out how wonderful gardeners are, they love to share with others. They are very helpful in the knowledge teaching you how to grow a plant. It is a feel good thing to give to others and a joyous feeling when you receive a gift of a plants or plant's from another gardener. A gift from a gardener is a very special gift indeed. We can all agree what puts a smile on our face is when you take a walk about the garden and see a plant coming up or being surprised by a bloom that you didn't know was soon to be there. Gardens love to wander about the garden looking for signs of life in the spring. It makes me feel alive again after the long winter months.

My soul soars forth from my body when I sit amongst God's creations and marvel at the intricate beauty and design that went and goes into each tiny petal and leaf. Even weeds have a beauty of their own and are reminder that even though we are blessed with beauty there is also weeds in our lives. Reaching and grasping a handfull of dirt and allowing it to flow through my fingers reminds me that we came from dirt and will return to dirt. Dirt teams with life and it gives life and takes it away. My garden reminds me that life is a cycle that goes full circle and when the circle is complete we depart to begin a new life elsewhere in heaven. Gardening fills my heart with love as I tenderly attend to the needs of my children. I plant tiny seeds and watch them as they sprout and spring forth from the dirt and the capsule that enclosed them to reach their heads towards the sun and light. To watch them as they sway in the breeze and to feel that same breeze lift the tendrils of my hair and gently caress my skin while stroking my soul. To watch that tiny plant grow and expand both outward and upward as it races towards maturity. To inhale the heady fragrances is to be at peace with yourself and the world. How anything so small could produce such aroma and then proceed onward to produces seeds for the next generation. Dirt slips theough my fingers are I gently loosen the soil around roots and apply food to help my children grow. Peace, oh the peace the fills every nook and cranny of my body. When the rage comsumes me I take it out on the weeds and the plants that have gotten out of control, but I feel their pain as I cut into their limbs to make them bend to my will. Sometimes the knowledge that I am imflicting pain overwhelms me and I sit and look at the leggy beauty that is before me. To tilt my face upwards and feel the warmth of the sun caress my skin before nature's water lightly falls upon my face to remind me that moisture and water are necessary to sustain life. Stress reliever, yes my garden is that and so much more. I once thought I was in control of my garden but Mother Nature is the true person in charge. When things displease her she causes drought or flood, ice or extreme heat. I marvel at how plants endure and survive dispite everything that is thrown their way and realize that my garden is my inspiration, my teacher and my oasis in a world of turmoil. Linda

The crayon ... leaves a colourful legacy! One of the best stress-relievers around ... ... is some humour (that isn't aimed at someone's ribs). When everyone's as busy as can be in an office ... ... and someone makes a funny comment, small joke, etc. ... ... everyone giggles a bit, or smiles ... ... and most everyone's blood pressure goes down a bit. Not only that ... I suspect that the work gets done more effectively ... and quickly. My opinion - disagree if you choose. ole joyful P.S. I sent it to my daughter ... who counsels people who've been laid off/downsized/made redundant ... and recruits other counsellors ... then trains themn ... then encourages, backstops, uplifts their flagging spirits, etc. ... for some 60 hours per week. o j